


The Perfect Solution

by Ink_Gypsy



Series: Lucky Clover Diner Universe [39]
Category: Lord of the Rings RPF (AU)
Genre: M/M, Sean Astin/Elijah Wood - Freeform, au fics, birthday gift fics, lucky clover diner universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-02-04
Packaged: 2019-10-22 08:51:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17659640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ink_Gypsy/pseuds/Ink_Gypsy
Summary: Elijah’s questioning him about gay bars has Sean’s insecurity returning.





	The Perfect Solution

**Author's Note:**

  * For [frolijahfan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/frolijahfan/gifts).



> Written for the birthday of a friend. Part of my Lucky Clover Diner Universe.

[ ](https://imgur.com/hfA4ANP)

“Have you ever been to a gay bar?” Elijah asked Sean after dinner one night.

Sean was taken aback by the question, and though he hated himself for it, allowed his mind to go to a place he tried his best not to visit, a place of doubt. What had prompted the question? Was Elijah asking because he was curious about something any young gay man would be, or had he asked because he’d finally realized what he’d been missing out on by settling into a monogamous relationship with an older lover? “Sure,” he replied cautiously. “Why do you ask?”

Elijah shrugged. “I was just wondering. Before I met you, I was too young to get into one, but now…” He left his thought unfinished.

Sean could have just accepted Elijah’s curiosity, but suspicion raised its ugly head, and with his face uncharacteristically solemn, he said, “So now that you’re of legal age and can get into one, you’ve decided you want to go to your first gay bar and pick up a stranger for a night of anonymous sex.”

Elijah actually went pale. “No!” he exclaimed, and Sean could hear panic in his voice. “I don’t want to pick up anyone, Sean! You’re the only one I want to be with, I swear!”

Feeling guilty about what he’d said, Sean tried to joke his way out of it. “Calm down, Elijah,” he said, forcing a smile. “I was only joking.”

“Well it wasn’t very funny,” Elijah told him. Obviously relieved, Elijah’s color had begun to come back.

Sean managed a chuckle. “I’m sorry. You’ve never mentioned gay bars before, so I couldn’t resist teasing you.”

“You call that teasing?” Elijah’s eyes widened. “You scared the shit out of me. Promise you won’t ever do that again, okay?”

“I promise.” Sean crossed his heart. Determined to make amends, he decided he owed Elijah some honesty. “As far as gay bars in the area,” he explained, “there’s only one that I know of, but I’m not sure if it’s still in business. I’m sure we can find out, and if you really want to check it out, you should go. Of course, if you want different kinds of bars to choose from, you should go into the city where there’s a much bigger variety.”

“There are different kinds of bars?” Elijah asked, looking uncertain.

“Lots of different kinds,” Sean confirmed. “There are regular gay bars, where guys of all types can go to have a drink and maybe hook up, but there are also specialized ones that cater to a specific type of clientele, like leather bars, which cater to the S/M trade.” At Elijah’s audible gulp, Sean smiled for real. “One look at you and the leathermen will be lining up to whip your cute little ass before they fuck it.”

Elijah’s cheeks went pink, and Sean had to admit that the blush only added to his beauty, but just the thought of welts marring Elijah’s smooth young flesh had Sean inwardly shuddering. He hated that he’d put that picture in Elijah’s head, and his own. Hoping to wipe it from both their minds, Sean said, “Some guys are into that, but I don’t see you ever being part of the leather scene.”

“Me either,” Elijah agreed. The pink was beginning to fade, but he shifted his feet, still looking uneasy. “I never said I wanted to go to a bar, Sean,” he said finally, “just that I was thinking about it. I was curious, that’s all”

“There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Then you’re not angry that I asked?”

“Of course not. Why should I be?”

“I just don’t want you to think that I’m not happy being with you, that I’m looking for something else, someone else.”

“I don’t.” Sean sighed. “Elijah, you’re still very young. It’s perfectly natural for you to be curious about something that’s a normal part of gay life, something that you’ve never done. You don’t have to justify that curiosity, and if you really want to go to a gay bar, then you should go. Maybe you need to see what it’s like to have guys checking you out like you were a delicacy on the gourmet menu, and I guarantee you they will.”

Elijah frowned. “I don’t think I’d like that,” he declared. “Besides, even if I decided to go, I wouldn’t want to go alone. I’d want you to go with me.”

Touched, Sean nodded. “All right, but guys _will_ check you out, even if I’m there with you. The minute you walk through the door, guys will be drawn to you like moths to a flame. Someone as young and beautiful as you are, they’ll be tripping over each other to get to you, and I can’t promise that I won’t get insanely jealous when they do.”

Elijah considered this, then countered with, “What if I get jealous when guys start checking _you_ out, even though you’re with me?”

What a kind and loving nature Elijah had, Sean thought. Despite Elijah’s compliment, Sean knew that if he walked into a bar with Elijah, he’d be invisible to practically every man there, making the fact that Elijah thought he was attractive, that this beautiful young man had fallen in love with him, all the more amazing. “Believe me, if we walked into a gay bar together, nobody would be checking me out.”

Elijah smiled. “I would,” he said, “and since you’re the only guy I want checking me out, maybe we should forget about gay bars and just stay home.”

The simplicity of Elijah’s proposal delighted Sean. “That sounds like the perfect solution.”

Elijah looked toward their bedroom, then back at Sean, inviting, “Wanna go check each other out, see what’s on the menu?”

Sean’s smile became a grin. “Definitely.”


End file.
